Balanced floor for ships&#39; cabins.



PATENTED NOV. 28, 1905.

R. P. DEWEY.

BALANCED FLOOR FOR SHIPS CABINS APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 26,, 1904.

WITNESSES,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BALANCED FLOOR FOR SHIPS GAB lNS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 28, 1905.

Application filed eptemher 26, 1904. Serial No. 225.911.

To all whmn it may concern:

Be it known thatLRoBERT P. DEWEY, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Balanced Floors for Ships Cabins and State-Rooms,of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in ship-building construction, and especially in a means for balancing the floors of saloons, cabins, and staterooms so that they will be main tained substantially level irrespective of the rolling of the vessel.

The invention consists of the parts and the construction and combination of parts, as hereinafter more fully explained,having reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l is a cross-section of avessel, showing application of my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of same. Fig. 3 is a cletail of supporting-boxes for pendulum.

In carrying out my invention 1 purpose counterbalancing the floor or floors from a point below, using such weight and so disposing and supporting it independent of the floor itself or its pivots as to reduce the oscillations of the floor to a minimum.

A represents the body of a ship, 2 a main cabin extending centrally and longitudinally of the vessel, and 3 the state-rooms on either side of the vessel.

. 4. represents the cabin-floor, here shown as centrally supported on a shaft 5 running lengthwise beneath the floor and journaled in suitable boxes 6,fastened securely to the ships timbers. This floor or deck platform would be substantially built, and the shaft and bearings would be such as the character of the structure, 'the weight to be supported, and other considerations would naturally demand. The shaft would be,in fact,rigid with the floorsection, and both would oscillate in unison. The floor is raised suficiently to allow it to adjust itself to the extreme roll of the vessel and be capable of maintaining always a horizontal position, and the opposite walls of the cabin within the range of movement of the floor are in the form of arcs of circles concentric with the axis of oscillation of the floor and contiguous to the edges of the floor, so that no space at any time will intervene between the walls and these edges. The balancing or leveling of the floor is maintained through the medium of a weighted pendulum 7, of suitable length and strength commensurate with the weight and area of the floor and of the prospective load to be supported thereon. The manner of suspending this pendulum constitutes an important feature of my invention. The shaft 5, while sufiicient in size for its intended purposes, has a comparatively small bearing-surface in its boxes, and were the pendulum to be made fast direct to the shaft the pendulum would continue to swing long after it should cease, and instead of the floor being maintained level the latter would be tipping from side to side and aggra vating the movement that it is the very purpose of the invention to obviate. [t is this rolling or side-to-side motion of the ship that it is desired to counteract. On large modern passenger vessels very little inconvenience is experienced from the pitching of the ship, since its great length reduces all end up and down movement to a minimum. Hence if the side or rolling motion can be satisfactorily overcome orc-ounteracted the floors would be maintained practically level the entire time. Instead, then, of the pendulum being fixed or attached to the shaft it is hung in separate bearings 8 in the deck, the head of the pendulum being provided with lateral segments 9 seating in these boxes, the latter being suitably cut away at the bottom and center, as shown at 10, to accommodate the pendulum and also to afford stops to limit its extreme swing in either direction. The curve of the segments 9 and of the surfaces of the boxes 8 directly supporting these segments is in the arc of a circle concentric with pivotshaft 5. The end of shaft 5 carriesa suitable cross-head 11 or equivalent bearing on either side of the center of the pivot on the head of the pendulum in such fashion that when the shaft 5 has been journaled in its boxes 6, so that neither it nor thefloor can be lifted or moved in any direction or partake of any movement other than a strict rotary pivotal movement, the shaft and floor will partake of precisely the same oscillatory movement as does the pendulum. The radius of the segments 9 is preferably of considerable length to increase the frictional bearing-surface, so that the tendency of the pendulum actually to swing on its pivot is reduced to a minimum. In fact, it may be said that with this construction and with a pendulum of sufficient weight the pendulum will remain stationary and vertical while the ship will oscillate. This is the desideratum which enables the floor to preserve its horizontal position.

It will be observed that the floor is supported on its own pivot 5 and journals 6, while the pendulum is independently supported in its boxes 8, yet both floor and pendulum oscillate in unison or remain stationary and the ship oscillates, according to the point of view.

,The pendulum is suitably and removably held in place in its bearings by the plates or bars 12, and the guides 13, running athwartships, keep the pendulum from swinging endwise of the ship during the rolling or pitching of the latter.

The state-rooms on either side may be similarly balanced. In case sufficient room may not be afforded to allow for long pendulums, and in order to give the state-room floors greater stability, the pendulum 7 may be connected with the main pendulum 7 by means of the links 14, whereby all the pendulums and floors may partake of the same movement or equally resist movement.

To allow the floor to be leveled in the first place when the vessel is at rest and the pendulum hangs perpendicular and to obviate all lost motion, I provide the center screws 15 on the cross-head which are adapted to bear on the top of the segments 9.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a ship, the combination of a movable floor or deck section, a shaft to which the floor-section is fixed, a weighted pendulum detached from the floor so as to be independent thereof, and a cross-head or bearing on the shaft and extending beyond opposite sides thereof said pendulum engaging the crosshead to effect the oscillation of the shaft and floor-section and thereby maintain the floorsection in horizontal position irrespective of the movements of the ship.

2. In a ship, the combination of a movable floor or deck section, a shaft to which the floor-section is fixed, a weighted pendulum detached from and independent of the fioor-section, and having an enlarged head provided with lateral segments the curve of which is in the arc of a circle concentric with the shaft, corresponding curved bearings fixed to the deck, in which the said pendulum-head is supported, and a cross-head or bearing fixed to the shaft and having its arms extending to opposite sides thereof and within the range of action of the upper portions of the segments.

3. In a ship, the combination of a movable floor or deck section, a shaft to which the floor-section is fixed, a weighted pendulum detached from and independent of the floor-section, and having an enlarged head provided with lateral segments the curve of which is in the arc of a circle concentric with the shaft, corresponding curved bearings fixed to the deck, in which the pendulum-head is mounted, a cross-head or bearing fixed to the shaft and having its arms extending to opposite sides thereof and within the range of action of the segments, and adjustable screws on the arms of the cross-head adapted to bear on the segments whereby the floor-section is leveled.

4. In a ship, the combination of a movable floor or deck section, a shaft to which the floor-section is fixed, a weighted pendulum detached from and independent of the floor-section, and having an enlarged head provided with lateral segments the curve of which is in the arc of a circle concentric with the shaft. corresponding curved bearings fixed to the deck, in which the pendulum-head is mounted, a cross-head or bearing fixed to the shaft and having its arms extending to opposite sides thereof and within the range of action of the segments, and adjustable screws on the arms of the cross-head adapted to bear on the segments whereby the floor-section is leveled, and the plates 12 covering the head of the pendulum and removably secured to allow the loose pendulum to be removed from its bearings.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ROBERT P. DEWEY. Witnesses:

GEORGE PATTIsoN,

J. A. ROBERTS. 

